NETHERLANDS
Dutch universities are rejecting an urgent request by Minister of Culture and Science Robbert Dijkgraaf that universities and colleges of applied sciences stop actively recruiting international students at international education fairs until further notice.
The university professors have said News from the University World that the minister is taking a step too far.
However, the universities themselves have proposed less restrictive restrictions, such as the introduction of fees for English courses in degree programs and limits on the proportion of international students in individual programs.
In a letter dated December 22, 2022, sent to university boards, Dijkgraaf demanded to stop active recruitment given the pressure on staff, facilities and accommodation, “until new agreements are made in the context of the internationalization vision de Dijkgraaf”, according to the spokesperson. for the Association of Netherlands Universities, Ruben Puylaert.
“So universities are not turning away students, they have been asked to stop actively recruiting at study fairs,” Puylaert explained.
Dijkgraaf’s letter followed a parliamentary motion initiated by MPs Peter Kwint (Socialist) and Harry van der Molen (centre-right Christian Democrat Appeal party) calling on the government to limit recruitment of international students.
However, Puylaert said News from the University World that there are currently no restrictions on international students coming to study other than “other than meeting the prerequisites and any language requirements of the degree program (and, of course, paying tuition).”
He said: “Some degree programs have an enrollment fee, but this applies to Dutch and foreign students.”
The minister’s proposal is unlikely to affect the small number of Dutch private universities dedicated to fashion or education.
Notably, in a letter to Dijkgraaf, the Wittenborg University of Applied Sciences, a private business school based in Apeldoorn, said it should be able to operate normally and recruit freely. Privately funded, the institution uses no public money and is able to invest in and develop its own student accommodation in the city.
Proposal to be debated by deputies
The minister is expected to discuss the issue with the Lower House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer) in the Dutch parliament in February. The new rules, if any are decided, can take effect as early as March, Puylaert explained.
Until then, public universities, such as the Eindhoven University of Technology, will accommodate Dijkgraaf’s request.
A spokesman for the Eindhoven University of Technology, Ivo Jongsma, said News from the University World: “We will stop our active recruitment until February, when the minister presents his vision on internationalization.”
The acting director of the Center for Communication Expertise at Eindhoven University of Technology, Maarten van den Dungen, has issued a note to staff saying: “We will not physically go abroad in January and February.”
Call to consider value added
However, university directors hope that the admission of international students will have a chance in the parliamentary debate: “We often focus on disadvantages, such as the use of English. [widely used in the Netherlands’ higher education sector] and the housing shortage,” van den Dungen said. “But there are also positive side effects…including increased business activity, more innovations, and higher tax revenues.”
Urging politicians to consider the added value of international students, he hoped Dijkgraaf would not impose permanent restrictions.
“Internationalization greatly contributes to the quality of our higher education and research,” said Puylaert. “In addition, internationalization is very valuable for the Netherlands. It provides highly qualified talent in demand in the labor market, especially in certain sectors and regions.”
Universities look for limits and quotas
However, to ensure a high-quality education, the Association of Netherlands Universities is asking for three instruments: a registration fee for an English (not Dutch) degree program; a limit of non-EEA students (European Economic Area – European Union plus Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) per degree programme; and an emergency quota that will be used if the numbers increase so much, “that the degree program is getting complicated.”
Jan Willem Besselaar, director of marketing, communication and student community at the Breda University of Applied Sciences, said News from the University World University professors expect “a more complete and nuanced letter” from the minister, most likely in February before the parliamentary debate.
For Besselaar, the challenge of how to ease the pressure on universities due to student overload must be seen as part of a much broader set of social issues, “such as housing in general, with students from Ukraine also needing accommodation, the immigration, carbon pollution… and we have a role in Europe to maintain the free exchange of people and knowledge,” he said.
“Active recruitment took place at trade shows and events abroad to inform prospective students,” before they were halted for January-February-March in response to Dijkbaar’s request. “We still have 25 agents in foreign countries and do a lot of online promotion.”
He said that if physical recruitment is no longer possible, “we, with our international profile, would be challenged and would need to find other ways to get in touch with prospective students.”
“We believe that having an international and intercultural classroom is a very important foundation of our educational vision,” Besselaar emphasized. “Students need it and the job market and industry need it.”
He said that the law as it stands allows people to come and study freely.
Instead of reducing the number of foreign students, the government should provide more accommodation and more funding so that universities can offer higher quality programs, he said.
Specialized universities like Breda already have a considerable number of international students, he said: “This academic year, we welcomed 600 new international students out of 2,100 enrollments (29%), a relatively high proportion compared to many universities and other UAS. . [universities of applied sciences] in the Netherlands. Around 25% to 30% of our international students are not from the EU.”
The Netherlands has 80,000 foreign students
In 2021-2022 (2022-2023 figures will be published in February) there were 79,826 international higher education students in the Netherlands: 57,230 from the European Economic Area (EEA); 5,154 European, non-EEA and 17,393 non-European, Puylaert said. Statistics Netherlands puts this figure higher, saying that 115,000 international students chose the Netherlands to study in that academic year.
According to a study by Nuffic, a Dutch organization for the internationalization of education, the list of the top 10 countries of origin for foreign students at Dutch research universities in 2021 was topped by Germany (16,169), followed by Italy (8,771), China (4,689) and Romania (3,401).
There are two categories of tuition fees for the Breda University of Applied Sciences and many other Dutch universities of applied sciences, Besselaar said: a legal fee for all EEA countries, including the Netherlands, of €2,314 for most bachelor’s and master’s programs, “with research universities that may have other charges.” The total price for non-EEA students ranges from €11,050 to €13,000 for some Master courses.
“The difference between these fees is because the government provides funding for students in the EEA,” Puylaert said. The higher fees could reduce the influx of non-EEA students, she said. News from the University World: “However, as most are within the EEA, it would only affect a relatively small group of international students.”
For now, these universities are lobbying the government and parliamentarians “to ensure that people have the right data and influence good decision-making,” Besselaar said.
“I don’t think anyone wants to stop people from actively recruiting international students, although universities with a lot of pressure on housing would want to handle this.
“There is also a call to stop study applications from people from, for example, Bangladesh or Pakistan. [if they are really] just trying to get to Europe (although such abuse is limited), but this is very different from saying ‘Don’t do it at all’.”
